The moment the door to her room clicked shut, Elicia collapsed onto her bed.
"I’m... exhausted..."
She let out a muffled groan against the soft mattress. Still wearing her dress, she lay face down, relishing the silence. There were no attendants here, and no one was watching. That simple fact was enough to let all the tension drain from her shoulders at once.
"Haa..."
She rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. Her mind drifted back through the day’s events: the Academy, the lectures, and then—that scene.
"..."
The memory made her kick her legs against the mattress in a flurry of movement.
Thump, thump, thump.
"Hmph..."
A small, sulky sound escaped her lips. She was thinking about the moment Caiel had stepped forward, just as Luka-sama was about to take his turn.
(That was...)
"It was supposed to be Luka-sama's turn," she whispered to the empty room.
It wasn’t that she disliked Lord Caiel or thought he was incompetent. Nor did she believe that Luka-sama's reputation would have suffered. It was just—she had wanted to see that moment when he stepped into the spotlight.
"..."
She kicked her legs again.
"What... what am I even thinking?"
From Luka-sama’s perspective, it must have been a truly helpful gesture. If that were the case, then Caiel’s actions were objectively correct. Luka-sama likely could not use magic at all; he never spoke of it, and he had admitted to having no Magical Power Talent. In that light, the intervention was perfect—considerate and beyond reproach.
And yet, the depths of her chest tightened with a faint ache.
"..."
Elicia covered her face with both hands.
"Tomorrow," she murmured. "Tomorrow... I will..."
She didn't finish the thought, but in her mind, his effortless, carefree smile was clear as day.
"I wonder... if Luka-sama will praise me then."
The rhythmic kicking of her feet grew a little faster.
◇ ◇ ◇
The nighttime hallway was silent. Walking without making a sound had become a habit for Yuka—one no one had taught her. She had simply lived that way for a long time.
It had been another long day. The Academy, the lectures, the Practical Skills... and Luka-sama. Just the thought of him made her heart stir.
Returning to her assigned quarters, she climbed into bed earlier than usual to prepare for the next day. Surrounded by the spacious room and the high-quality linens, she found herself almost forgetting that she was a slave.
Sleep eluded her. She stared at the ceiling, slowly steadying her breathing. Even now, the sensation of sinking into such soft sheets felt slightly unsettling.
She had grown accustomed to it, but at first, she had been afraid even to touch anything. The bed, the room, the meals—every time he told her, "This is yours," she had assumed it would be stripped away eventually.
In the beginning, she had felt nothing toward him. No hatred, no anger. In her world, even one's own family couldn't be trusted. That was why...
She remembered that day. The day she had shared a bath with Luka-sama.
To be honest, she hadn't understood his reasoning. He spoke of "responsibility to raise her" or "social experience." The words meant nothing to her, but she never imagined she had the right to refuse. She had been terrified, and she had nowhere to run.
But then...
"Baths are nice, aren't they? They warm both the body and the soul."
He had smiled at her as if it were the most natural thing in the world. The way he kept his distance, the clumsy way he reached out—it had lit a spark in her heart.
Nothing was taken from her. Instead, he had given her a name. He had called out to her, not with a command, but with a voice that seemed to seek her presence.
"Yuka."
Every time he spoke her name, a warmth bloomed in her chest. She realized then that she had been right to leave her past behind. She couldn't help but hope—that if it was this person, things might be different.
She had wanted to give something back, so she began to work for his sake. Before she knew it, her role had shifted from "one who is cared for" to "one who cares for him."
She didn't mind the change. It was strange; she had never imagined herself "serving" anyone in the past. Her life and the way she was treated were entirely different now.
He never gave orders. There was no fear. In fact, her heart grew warmer every time he spoke to her. She wanted to be by his side. It hadn't taken long for that desire to take root.
She pictured him at the Academy in the morning—his sleepy face as he stifled a yawn.
"I don't want to go..."
She saw him standing up slowly, complaining under his breath. She couldn't leave him like that. So, she stood beside him. Just as he had asked, she stood there as an equal.
By the time that feeling became natural, the word "slave" and the girl she used to be had lost their meaning. Now, she was simply his Yuka.
She gently closed her eyes. Tomorrow would be another day just like this one. They would go to the Academy, attend classes, and return home. That was enough. That was her new reality.
She wanted to believe in him. She wanted to find the warmth she thought she had lost forever within his presence. Cradling that faint, lingering heat in her heart, Yuka slowly drifted into sleep.